Commercial mowers typically use reel-type mowing units which employ cylindrical cutting reels having a number of helical blades disposed about a central shaft. To ensure optimal cutting performance, the helical blades of the cutting reels must be regularly sharpened. Commercial grinders have been developed to perform such sharpening, which is typically a two part process. First, a spin grinding process is carried out during which the cutting reel is spun counter to a grinding wheel which “squares off” or grinds flat the end of each of the helical blades so as to “true” the reel to its desired cylindrical shape and to form a cutting edge thereon. Second, a relief grinding process is carried out where the grinding wheel individually grinds a relief onto the back of each helical blade.
Mowing units typically include a frame structure to which the cutting reel, a bedknife, a front roller, and a rear roller are mounted. In order for the grinding process to sharpen the blades of the cutting reel as close as possible to OEM (original equipment manufacturer) specifications, the cutting reel must be properly aligned with the grinding wheel(s) of the grinding system. Conventional grinding systems typically secure to and position the cutting reel of mowing units using the front roller.
However, mowing units of different types have different characteristics that often require unique setup requirements. For example, the configuration of the mower unit components may vary between cutting reels of different sizes and between mower units from different manufactures with each configuration requiring a different setup. This is further complicated by the fact that the front roller is often moved to various positions, such as to enable the installation of attachments (e.g. combs, thatchers, groomers, etc.) to the front portion of the frame, thereby making access to the front roller difficult and changing roller positions so that even mowing units of the same manufacturer and model often require different setups for grinding.
In view of the above, while conventional mower reel grinding systems are effective at sharpening cutting reels, such grinding systems often require complicated setup procedures to place the cutting reel in a position for optimal grinding results. Such setup procedures are time consuming and can result in inconsistent and inaccurate sharpening of the cutting reel blades.